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  3. The Changing Middle Class The United States perceives itself to be a middle...

The Changing Middle Class The United States perceives itself to be a middle...

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问题 The Changing Middle Class
The United States perceives itself to be a middle-class nation. However, middle class is not a real designation, nor does it carry privileges (特权).It is more of a perception, which probably was as true as it ever could be right after World War II. The economy was growing, more and more people owned their own homes, workers had solid contracts with the companies that employed them, and nearly everyone who wanted a higher education could have one. Successful people enjoyed upward social mobility. They may have started out poor, but they could become rich. Successful people also found that they had greater geographic mobility. In other words, they found themselves moving to and living in a variety of places.
The middle class collectively holds several values and principles. One strong value is the need to earn enough money to feel that one can determine one’s own economic fate. In addition, middle-class morality (道德观)embraces principles of individual responsibility, importance of family, obligations to others, and believing in something outside oneself.
But in the 1990s those in the middle class found that there was a price for success. A U.S. News World Report survey in 1994 indicated that 75 percent of Americans believed that middle-class families could no longer make ends meet. Both spouses (配偶)now worked, as did some of the children , long commutes (通勤)became routine, the need for child care put strains on the family, and public schools were not as good as they once were. Members of the middle class were no longer financing their lifestyles through earnings but were using credit to stay afloat (透支).The understanding of just what middle class meant was changing.
The 1994 survey showed most Americans thought the middle class{pz_填空}.
选项 A took pleasure in raising children
B had a regular journey to work
C could not earn enough money to maintain their lifestyles
D could easily maintain their lifestyles
答案C
解析文章最后一段谈的是20世纪末期美国中产阶级的变化，几乎每一句话讲到的变化都是负面的，即变得越来越糟糕。"could not make ends meet”这个成语的意思是“收不抵支，入不敷出”，中产阶级已无法通过自己的收入来维持自己的生活方式，而只能用信用卡来透支(Members of the middle class were no longer financing their lifestyles through earnings but were using credit to stay afloat.)。
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